The second quarter brought good news and bad news for auto icon Ford. The good? Ford's U.S. sales and profits continued to be strong. The bad: Overall profits were down 57% because of the challenges it faces overseas.

Not long ago, each time gas prices shot up and car buyers turned to more fuel-efficient models, the Detroit automakers would get hammered. Their lineups favored gas-hogs, and their smaller models left much to be desired. Oh, how times have changed.

The day after Thanksgiving isn't just the best time to land deals on TVs and blu-ray players: It's also the best savings day of the year for cars. Price cuts will be everywhere as dealerships try to compete with the malls and big box stores, but we've got the five vehicles that will have the biggest discounts.

Ford plans to invest $600 million in a Kentucky plant to build the next-generation Escape SUV, creating an 1,800 additional jobs, the automaker said Thursday. The new jobs will be added incrementally after the Louisville Assembly plant is rehabbed and reopened late next year.

The recent winning bidder for a low-mileage 2008 Ford Escape hybrid may have gotten more than he or she bargained for -- especially if it's dark gray in color. It seems that matches the description of the vehicle President Barack Obama drove prior to his bid to become president of the United States.